blockhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk
Contemporary Homeware, Design-led Gifts and Statement JewelleryTue, 03 Mar 2015 20:45:54 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4Block Sketch Tidy Redhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/block-sketch-tidy-red/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/block-sketch-tidy-red/#commentsFri, 23 Jan 2015 10:00:45 +0000Thomashttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=5297Read More →]]>This week will see us add a new colour to our popular line of Sketch Tidy’s. We have been working hard on our new palette for our 2015 product range and red will be our first introduction. We will be showing of the new colour at Maison & Objet. Which runs from the 23rd – 27th of January. You can find us in Hall 6 — Stand L18.

Our range of Sketch Tidy’s is based off of an architectural drawing that our lead designer, Tara, did while in art school. And is available here. Don’t worry our red version will be available soon!

We see big things for Red this year and gained some great inspiration for our choice of shade from the fashion and design industry from earlier on in 2014.

We are extremely excited to be adding a new colour to the range and have compiled a list of our favourite products. Of course they are Red too!

We love this vibrant Red and cant wait to see more of it throughout 2015. Keep up to date with all Blocks activities by following us on Instagram!

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/block-sketch-tidy-red/feed/0New – Pegboard Mapshttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-pegboard-maps/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-pegboard-maps/#commentsFri, 16 Jan 2015 15:45:56 +0000Thomashttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=5246Read More →]]>Next week we will be launching our NEW range of printed PegBoards at Maison & Objet. Here’s a sneak preview of the Map range available to order in the Spring. If you just can’t wait that long check out our current range of coloured pegboards here…

Our printed map range features ‘CityScapes’ too. The PegBoards are supplied as usual with our coloured pegs to record trips or plan future adventures. They are a brilliant alternative to a noticeboard for displaying travel keepsakes and memories.

The inspiration for the design comes from beautiful vintage maps of the 1950′s. The natural colour of the board is perfect for a retro feel.

On our wish list at the moment is Suck’s Cork Globe, the brilliant globe in supplied with pins to ‘pinpoint’ your way around the world.

We love Luckies Scratch Map featuring a gold foil top layer. Once a country has been visited, the intrepid traveller gets to scratch it off to reveal beautifully vibrant details beneath. Scratching also reveals amazing facts about the world.

The Future Mapping Company have a fantastic range of thought provoking maps. They use an equal-area projection to represent countries in their correct proportional size (something which a lot of maps don’t do). The colours are beautiful too.

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-pegboard-maps/feed/0NEW – Grey PegBoardhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-grey-peg-board/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-grey-peg-board/#commentsFri, 21 Nov 2014 12:47:05 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=5113Read More →]]>This week we launched our new Grey PegBoard. Grey is here to stay in interiors and is sure to be the neutral of choice in 2015.

We had a lot of fun styling our PegBoards for our shoot with photographer Matt Jessop this week so we’re excited to share the shots with you! Take a look at each size for some pegging inspiration – large – medium – small – mini …

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/new-grey-peg-board/feed/0Sketch Desk Tidy featured on Design Milkhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/sketch-desk-tidy-featured-on-design-milk/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/sketch-desk-tidy-featured-on-design-milk/#commentsFri, 15 Aug 2014 14:29:34 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4828Read More →]]>It was fantastic to see our Sketch Desk Tidy featured on Design Milk this month.
The Desk Tidy was inspired by our lead designer Tara’s architectural drawings hidden within her art college sketchbooks. The geometric wire cage is nestled within a wooden base. For those of you with a stationery fetish like us this is great for proudly displaying your favourite finds! Have you taken a look at the amazing range on Present and Correct? Definitely worth a visit!
The Sketch Desk Tidy is now in stock, available in Black and Blue. Look out for an Orange Desk Tidy coming soon!

Sketch Book inspiration

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/sketch-desk-tidy-featured-on-design-milk/feed/0Ms. Pink tells her story in Four Objectshttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/ms-pink-tells-her-story-in-four-objects/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/ms-pink-tells-her-story-in-four-objects/#commentsFri, 06 Jun 2014 11:36:05 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4729Read More →]]>Ms. Pink is one half of East London design duo Quirk & Rescue. They specialise in wallpaper, cushions, fabric and bespoke hand-painted furniture. All their designs are original, based on elements as diverse as typography, music and 19th century optical illusions. Together with Mr. Black they have created a signature style using bold colours combined with flat graphics, resulting in a range of products that are both classic and modern.
We met Quirk & Rescue earlier this year at the Home trade show and have been in love with their striking work ever since. Here Ms. Pink shares with us Four significant objects in her life…

Cushions

This pic is of our first cushion collection, a collection close to my heart as I spent a lot of my youth going to gigs. I was (and still am) a huge music fan and the cushion that resonates the most is the Punk one.

At the age of 13 my mum let me have the afternoon off school to travel through to Glasgow to see The Damned,my favourite band at the time. Apart from the fact I had to travel by train from Edinburgh I look back and realise this was quite radical of her,she was a teacher at my school!

Punk and its ethos stayed with me for many years,there are aspects of it in our work.
*Some bands I saw, The Clash, The Damned, The Undertones, AC/DC, Boomtown Rats, Motorhead and many many more.

This is a corner of our living room and it encompasses what we love, colour and shape. Some of the glass is Danish Holmegaard but some is cheap and cheerful, I don’t care about brands or labels, if it looks nice that’s enough.

Trays

Trays are my main love (after kids and partner of course!). I love everything about them,the bright colours and simple patterns.
There are approx 64 lining the stairs in our hallway and I delight every time I see them. Sounds OTT but they always make me smile. I will never stop collecting them and my heart beats faster every time I see one I haven’t yet got! (see more of Ms. Pinks collection here… www.pinterest.com/quirkandrescue/70s-tray-collection/)

Children (not objects but so important in my life)

Our middle son made these for my birthday a couple of years ago. I framed them and they are on the living room wall much to his nearly teenage embarrassment (He’s almost 13)

I love children’s art/drawings/work as its always so real and not at all contrived.

Needless to say the pledges on it only lasted a couple of weeks!

I love the picture beside because its such a rare occurrence that all 3 of our kids are together enjoying the same thing. With the eldest being 17 and the youngest being 6 days out altogether are rare. Here they all sat for over an hour throwing pebbles into the waves. Bliss!

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/ms-pink-tells-her-story-in-four-objects/feed/0Pulse London, Earls Courthttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pulse-london-earls-court/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pulse-london-earls-court/#commentsThu, 15 May 2014 13:16:34 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4686Read More →]]>What a fantastic surprise to see our Vases on the HUGE Pulse posters on the front of Earls Court! It was a brilliant start to what turned out to be a great show, thank you to everyone who came to visit our stand!

Our Neon Vases were the star of the stand as visitors recognised the eye catching design. Lots of requests were made for the Neon Drip to feature in more designs so watch this space…

We were thrilled with the reaction to the new PegBoard launched only 2 weeks ago. Visitors loved the nostalgia of the design and the colour choices on offer.

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pulse-london-earls-court/feed/0Jamie Antoniades tells his story in Four Objectshttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/jamie-antoniades-tells-his-story-in-four-objects/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/jamie-antoniades-tells-his-story-in-four-objects/#commentsThu, 17 Apr 2014 10:46:42 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4590Read More →]]>Jamie is one half of design duo J-me. Having studied design at Central St Martins Jamie founded the company in September 2000 by Jamie with his brother Mark. Their desire was to create products for the design conscious. Since their launch the have won many awards and successfully exported the J-me brand globally. J-me products show a love of design, attention to detail and a sense of humour. The company is located in the creative hub of London’s Oxo Tower, and Jamie and Mark are still the lead designers of a growing dynamic team. Check out their website here

Jamie talks us through 4 objects and their significance to him…

skate board

love skateboards although not a skateboarder…found this white one to use a magazine rack…elevates the magazines off the floor…

frame chair

why not have a frame chair canvas that you can actually sit in? surprises everybody when they realize you can sit in it…

shoe rack

this is an existing j-me product which has a huge audience in germany (the stainless steel version). this white one is 1 of 1 and to be confirmed if it makes it into the j-me range…

canvas

the graphics on this canvas is awesome….really stands out against the white wall…

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/jamie-antoniades-tells-his-story-in-four-objects/feed/0NEW Product – PegBoardhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pegboard/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pegboard/#commentsWed, 09 Apr 2014 15:42:09 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4512Read More →]]>This week we are launching our new PegBoard. We have been using our peg board clad wall in the studio (below) for our own design process for years. It is such a creative media and perfect for displaying materials, samples and ideas.

Last month Elle Decoration magazine predicted a revival of the peg board for interiors. The simplicity and functionality of the concept makes peg board a flexible form of storage but also look great when customised.

An inspiring array of peg board usage can also be seen currently in visual merchandising. The example below is taken from the brilliant design gift subscription company Not Another Bill pop up post-box at The Shop at Blue Bird. For more creative use of the media check out our Pinterest board here

We love the interesting take of the peg board in mixed media. Below is ’Peggy’ Wall Paper by Mini Moderns. Their wallpaper is ‘inspired by the humble peg boards from hardware stores and junk shops around Dungeness’. Check out their website for a beautiful range of home accessories and furnishings.

Below is the ‘Wardrobe’ made of powder coated perforated metal, available at Dowse. Developed from the folded perforated walls used in workshops, the three-dimensional object has shelves and hooking capabilities at different levels.

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/pegboard/feed/0Neon Inspirationhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/neon-inspiration/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/neon-inspiration/#commentsFri, 04 Apr 2014 09:56:24 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4481Read More →]]>Our Malvern stockist Kozihaus inspired this weeks colour blog with her beautiful window display. As an official Cambridge Satchel stockist she teamed her gorgeous Neon Satchels with our Vases. We love the way the Neon display pops out of the shop window! Kozihaus also has an online shop, check out Donna’s fantastic range here.

As it’s National Stationery Week we thought we’d share some of the beautiful Neon stationery that makes us go weak at the knees! Future & Found has a carefully curated range of stylish accessories available online and in store. Their blog is also worth a visit, full on their top picks and inspiration.

We also love the stationery from East London design company Neon London. They recently had a Pop Up shop at West Elm showing their fantastic range of things ‘neon and bright’! You can see photos on their Twitter feed, check out their Etsy page if you would like to buy a few bits to add a Neon London touch to your life…

Finally we have to mention the Neon cord used to hold the Plumen bulb in our recent photo shoot of the Neon Vase. We got the NUD Collection Neon Cord from the website for incredibly useful things Urban Cottage Industries. Urban Cottage sent us an extensive collection of Cord samples so that we could select just the right cord for our photo shoot. The single Neon cord accessory made the perfect finishing touch for our shoot but we also love the display below with many different colours!

Don’t forget to head over to the beautiful Breathe Happiness blog this weekend for an exclusive Block Neon Vase giveaway! Be sure to visit their Southwood Stores online shop!

]]>http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/neon-inspiration/feed/0IVANKA win Dulux Let’s Colour Award 2014http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/ivanka-win-dulux-colour-award/
http://www.blockdesign.co.uk/ivanka-win-dulux-colour-award/#commentsFri, 28 Mar 2014 14:17:59 +0000sarahhttp://www.blockdesign.co.uk/?p=4434Read More →]]>We first met Hungarian company Ivanka at Tent London in 2012. We were blown away by their amazing use of colour in their concrete designs. We were so pleased to see them take home the Dulux Let’s Colour Award for ‘Colour Innovation in Technology & Design’ earlier this week. The Dulux awards are an inspirational celebration of the outstanding use of colour over the past year. To see all the winners click here

The product that caught the judges attention was the distinctively designed Flaster Floor Tiles. The tiles come in 18 different colour ways and are inspired by traditional Moroccan tiling and parquet flooring. Visit their website to use the highly addictive interactive colour composer.

Ivanka have worked on some very exciting interior design projects since the development of the Flaster Tile. These include an installation at Liberty London (pictured below).